Jeanette Margaret Klapperick

Jeanette Margaret Klapperick (née Wagner) peacefully passed away the morning of February 10th, 2023, at the age of 94, at Prairie Manor Care Center in Blooming Prairie.

Jeanette was born on a farm near Staceyville, Iowa on June 23, 1928 to Katherine “Katie” (Schneider) Wagner and Bernard “Barney” Wagner, the fourth of four girls.  She grew up in Austin, Minnesota, where her mother owned a corner grocery store. She loved all of her siblings, and helped raise her five younger half-siblings born after her mother remarried following Barney’s death.  Jeanette worked to help support her family, first at the Canton Café, then at Hormel until she was married.

Jeanette married Elmer Klapperick on March 24th, 1951 at Fort Rucker, Alabama, while Elmer was stationed there during the Korean War.  Elmer and Jeanette met on a camping trip with friends. Jeanette was a homemaker and loved her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren very much.  Her grandchildren have fond memories of visiting her for lunch when they had open lunch during high school, and remember her Halloween popcorn balls.  She frequently made a sweet dessert to share at “smorgasbord” or church.  Jeanette prayed for her loved ones every night, and loved listening to mass, especially the hymns.  Jeanette loved to read, a hobby she continued until the last weeks of her life.  She credited her older sisters with teaching her to read as a young child as a way to keep her out of their hair. She also loved to socialize, and kept up with many friends and extended family members.  Jeanette knit and crocheted many afghans, pairs of mittens, and washcloths for family members.  After Elmer retired from Hormel, the pair enjoyed spending winters as “golden geese” in Florida, where they enjoyed playing cards and socializing with friends, and soaking up the sunshine.  She and Elmer loved to just “go for a drive,” often to Rochester to enjoy a dinner out at Wong’s Cafe. 

She is survived by her four children: Tony (Brenda Wangen) Klapperick, Joan (Mark) Thompson, Lori Klapperick, and Jon (Mary) Klapperick; nine grandchildren: Tony Klapperick, Jr., Kyle (Jess) Klapperick, Kelly (Emma Molls) Thompson, Josh (Meg Introwitz-Williams) Klapperick, Kelsey Klapperick, Abby (Kyle) Bergman, Sami (Sam Ferrian) Klapperick, Connor (Mady) Klapperick, and Jarid Vaith; six great-grandchildren: Easton, MacKenna, Blake, Hudson, Everly, and Aspen; one sibling, Bob Wolf; and many nieces, nephews, and extended family members. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband of 60 years, Elmer; her parents, Barney and Katie; her siblings Veronica “Ronnie” Anderson, Marian Stanek, Dorothy Hemann, JoAnn Holgate, Geraldine Hendershott, Jim Wolf, Albert “Albie” Wolf; and many friends and extended family members.